[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 202 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 202

  Noting the absence of human rights as a topic of discussion in the 
   U.S.-Saudi Strategic Dialogue between the United States and Saudi 
  Arabia, and urging the President to include this subject in working 
               level discussions with Saudi counterparts.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 3, 2007

   Mr. Delahunt (for himself, Mr. Rohrabacher, Mr. Crowley, and Mr. 
   Berman) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was 
              referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
  Noting the absence of human rights as a topic of discussion in the 
   U.S.-Saudi Strategic Dialogue between the United States and Saudi 
  Arabia, and urging the President to include this subject in working 
               level discussions with Saudi counterparts.

Whereas President George W. Bush and His Excellency King Abdullah Abdul Aziz al-
        Saud agreed in May 2005 to establish a U.S.-Saudi Strategic Dialogue 
        (``Strategic Dialogue'') under which the United States and Saudi Arabia 
        would convene talks every 6 months;
Whereas Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Minister of Foreign Affairs 
        Prince Saud Al-Faisal created 6 working groups under the Strategic 
        Dialogue's auspices to ``deal with functional issues and provide an 
        institutional framework through which officials from a number of 
        departments and Ministries from both governments work to constructively 
        and comprehensively address a range of issues of importance to both 
        countries'';
Whereas the working groups meet on an ``as needed'' basis and address the 
        following topics: counterterrorism; military affairs; energy; economic 
        and financial affairs; consular affairs; and partnership, education, 
        exchange, and human development;
Whereas the United States Department of State's Human Rights Report on Saudi 
        Arabia in 2007 found severe human rights abuses, including the 
        infliction of severe pain by judicially-sanctioned corporal punishments; 
        arbitrary arrest and detention; denial of fair public trials; exemption 
        from the rule of law and lack of judicial independence; arbitrary 
        interference with privacy, family, home, and correspondence; significant 
        restriction of civil liberties such as freedoms of speech and press, 
        including the Internet; assembly; association and movement, and minimal 
        political rights, including no right to peacefully change the 
        government;
Whereas Freedom House has rated Saudi Arabia as a ``Not Free'' country for the 
        past 34 years, and has consistently cited it as one of the 8 worst 
        regimes in the world due to the severe restrictions on civil liberties 
        and political rights, including a ban on political parties, tight 
        government control over domestic media outlets, absence of religious 
        freedom, academic freedom, or judicial independence;
Whereas there is widespread legal and societal discrimination and violence 
        against women, including a denial of equal educational opportunities, 
        and severe work, dress and freedom of movement restrictions;
Whereas the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom listed 
        Saudi Arabia as a ``Country of Particular Concern'' in its 2007 report 
        because there is no legal recognition or protection of religious 
        freedom, it is severely restricted in practice; the government limits 
        the practice of all but the officially sanctioned version of Islam and 
        prohibits the public practice of other religions, including non-Muslim 
        religions and Shi'a and Sufi sects;
Whereas the Department of State's 2007 Trafficking in Persons Report identified 
        Saudi Arabia as a ``Tier 3'' category country, the poorest rating, due 
        to its failure to take steps to eliminate involuntary servitude, 
        particularly of domestic servants and to a lesser extent, commercial 
        sexual exploitation;
Whereas the promotion of human rights across the globe and especially in the 
        Middle East furthers United States security interests;
Whereas President Bush stated in his Second Inaugural Address that ``We will 
        encourage reform in other governments by making clear that success in 
        our relations will require the decent treatment of their own people.''; 
        and
Whereas President Bush stated in his Prague speech on June 5, 2007, ``The United 
        States is also using our influence to urge valued partners like Egypt 
        and Saudi Arabia and Pakistan to move toward freedom. ... The United 
        States will continue to press nations like these to open up their 
        political systems, and give greater voice to their people. Inevitably, 
        this creates tension. But our relationships with these countries are 
        broad enough and deep enough to bear it.'': Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That Congress--
            (1) commends the President for establishing the U.S.-Saudi 
        Strategic Dialogue (``Strategic Dialogue'') to address mutual 
        interests between the United States and Saudi Arabia;
            (2) expresses dismay that the Department of State did not 
        originally include human rights as a topic of discussion;
            (3) applauds the President for stating in Prague that the 
        ``United States will continue to press'' Saudi Arabia ``to give 
        greater voice to their people,'' since freedom of expression is 
        a vital human right;
            (4) agrees with the President's statement in Prague that 
        the relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia 
        ``is broad enough and deep enough'' to sustain a meaningful 
        conversation about human rights;
            (5) concludes that the Strategic Dialogue is the logical 
        mechanism through which to discuss the promotion of human 
        rights in Saudi Arabia; and
            (6) calls upon the President and the Secretary of State to 
        expand the Strategic Dialogue and establish a new working group 
        to address human rights.
                                 <all>